His worst nightmare
by Mireilles3
Summary: When Vader hides away his son after capturing him again, is it really the best way to protect the boy from Darth Sidious? Or will he end up worsening the situation for both father and son? L/V/E/A/etc. drama, angst, hurt/comfort, etc. not slash
1. Chapter 1

Unending night

By Mireille

2000/2012

When Vader hides away his son after capturing him again, is it really the best way to protect the boy from Darth Sidious? Or will it worsen the situation for both father and son?

* * *

Good afternoon everyone!

Here is the sixth of eleven stories that I feel like writing, but can't decide which to work on first. Can you help me figure out that answer?

The story with the most readers and reviews will be my next project in the works. Since it can take a few parts before we finally get to the crux of some stories, I won't check the final tally right from the start. However, only the total of both reviews and ongoing readers will determine which story I'm going to work on first, so, if you like this one, leave a review to vote for it :)

Thanks for your help! Hope you enjoy this story as well!

If you do, please, share your thoughts :D

* * *

Disclaimers: Nothing in the Star Wars Universe belong to me; everything belongs to George Lucas. I'm only writing stories for fun.

* * *

When Luke's x-wing had begun acting up, the Force had been with the Jedi as he had been within reach of the Corellian system.

Since it was more of an independent territory that merely bowed to the Empire than a true imperial enclave, Luke had decided to land at the extremely-busy spaceport of Coronet City where he could disappear in amongst the crowd, even while aboard an x-wing fighter.

His forged civilian ID for both himself and his ship had done the rest and, after declining assistance from mechanics for hire, he had left Artoo in charge of the fighter while he went in search of the parts that he needed to fix his hyperdrive.

Again.

As he pulled his non-descript hat tighter around his head, Luke threw a wary glance at the reflective windows of the shops he walked by. He let out a breath he had been holding when he confirmed once again that no one seemed to be following him.

His warning senses were also quiet, a relief in and by itself.

This time, he had been careful to cover his black uniform with a shabby poncho that would not look out of place on most worlds. Normally, when he was away from a rebel base, he also coloured his hair a dull brown while hiding his distinctive blue eyes behind equally dull brown lenses. However, he hadn't planned on this emergency stop and so, he had had to resort to a hat to conceal his features from prying eyes.

That would teach him not to pack his 'spy' kit on his ship even during base-to-base transits.

Still, the alternative seemed to work well, and so, he focused his attention on the object of his venture down the streets of Coronet.

Unfortunately for him, the shops that filled the street he was in sold anything 'but' mechanical parts.

Now he understood why Han had always warned him against ever going shopping in Coronet City. They were ready to hook whatever potential buyer dared drift by their front window.

* * *

Two hours later, he was beginning to despair. Either the prices were too high for his meagre means, or else they didn't have the specialized part that an Incom T-65 required. As for haggling down, he was dealing with Corellians...

They had invented and honed the art of haggling for prices. They could not be duped by his attempts to appear uninterested. Worse, even though he had tried to 'sway' a few of them with the Force, he still hadn't made any progress.

Either he wasn't doing it right, or they were too strong-minded for his Jedi trick to work.

Anyhow, when compared with their lot, Han's bargaining approach was most reasonable and even pleasant.

He dimly wondered if he could – just this time – use the Force to quietly appropriate the required part - when he stilled as an unfamiliar-yet-familiar sensation began to nag at his sixth sense.

Oh no...

The last times that he had felt 'that' peculiar unease, he had been on Kadora and...

He quickly looked around, almost expecting the sight of white and black armours amongst the crowd, but the imperials hadn't found him yet.

Then he had some time to hide, he decided and walked toward the most crowded area of the city. He had seen several construction sites that limited the ground traffic while providing a lot of terrain for a Jedi to disappear.

Hopefully, he could hide there, or at least acquire a mean of transportation that would allow him to leave the city's vicinity until Vader had left.

He also made certain to shield his presence from the Sith's detection.

* * *

Unfortunately, either he 'also' didn't know how to shield properly, or else Vader was much more powerful than he had surmised, but by the time that he reached the edge of his destination, Vader's shuttle was landing straight in the crowded street, blocking off his escape down that way.

Even without reaching out, Luke could 'feel' the other's presence aboard the landing ship.

He didn't ponder his options any longer and turned straight into the yard of the closest construction site. Naturally, safety droids immediately objected to his presence there, but he ignored them and jumped on rising equipment before he jumped on the skeleton of the future high-rise.

There, on the fifth story of the construction, he landed and ran into the unfinished structure, dodging more droids and occasional workers while he tried to come up with a plan to escape the harbinger of doom that was after him.

The Force remained silent to his prayers but he remembered his stout mechanical friend and an idea came to him.

He quickly pulled out his comlink to contact Artoo, only to find out that the imperials were jamming him. Naturally.

He suddenly became aware that Vader's ominous presence had drawn closer and, when he listened with the Force, bypassing all the raucous of the site, he heard his trademark breathing only a few floors below him.

Panicked, Luke searched for a way to reach even higher floors. He jumped through a hole that was normally used to drop debris into the garbage bins down below, ran to the other side of the unfinished floor, using the Force to balance himself when he had nothing but beams to walk on. Then, spying metallic strands that ran along the length of the construction, he jumped and caught hold of one.

Using his arms, his legs and the Force, he pushed himself up as fast as he could; in a way, his exercices on Dagobah had prepared him for that, and yet...

A quick scan of his surroundings with his fledgling senses informed him that he was surrounded.

*There is no escape, Son. Stop this-"

NO! he screamed inwardly, pushing himself further up the sturdy cable that would take him… somewhere…

He was beyond reason, beyond logic... All that mattered to him was to escape Vader.

His...

No, he wouldn't think about it. He would never accept it.

He pulled himself further up- when his warning senses flared up, screaming at him to duck.

He did so- and looked up just as the red lightsaber scythed the air above him before it sliced neatly through the wire he was hanging on.

Even as he understood that Vader had thrown his blade to bring him down from his perch, Luke prepared to catch on another wire. Unfortunately, the blade came back and cut them all, making his plan impossible.

Then, he was free-falling from twelve-storey high, and he could only try and grab hold of his hidden lightsaber before he landed – safely – within Vader's reach. He also tried to levitate himself back into the structure, but he was too nervous to find his center.

Worse, Vader had definitely gotten hold of him and was slowing him down while applying an inexorable pull on him.

Luke struggled fiercely against the other's Force, to no avail.

Then, he changed strategies and turned his lightsaber on, intent on killing himself before he reached the ground.

He was never able to think further than that before Vader used the Force to knock him out.

He had lost. Again.

He barely felt his lightsaber's handle slip from his fingers before his senses eluded him completely.

TBC

* * *

Well? How was that?

If you want more, you know what to do:) And if you don't want more because of bad characterizations, lack of detail, or anything that could help me improve this story into a more edible read, I'd still like to know why (via private messaging if you prefer). However, if you simply don't like _this kind_ of story, then don't worry. To each our own :)

Have a great week-end everyone, and remember, reviews are very precious gifts all year long :D Moreover, this time, they might make me work on this story first for the next year or so ;P So? Will you vote for it? I hope so!


	2. Chapter 2

His worst nightmare

By Mireille

2000/2012

* * *

When Vader hides away his son after capturing him again, is it really the best way to protect the boy from Darth Sidious? Or will it worsen the situation for both father and son?

* * *

Good afternoon everyone!

Here is the second part of the sixth of eleven stories that I feel like writing, but can't decide which to work on first. Can you help me figure out that answer?

The story with the most readers and reviews will be my next project in the works. So, if you like this one, leave a review to vote for it :)

Thanks for your help! Hope you enjoy this story as well!

If you do, please, share your thoughts :D

* * *

Disclaimers: Nothing in the Star Wars Universe belong to me; everything belongs to George Lucas. I'm only writing stories for fun.

* * *

Part 2: Hiding a Jedi

When Luke's senses finally returned to him, he felt horrible; he was almost nauseous and felt as if his strengths had deserted him.

Then, the second thing he noticed was the rhythmic breathing that could only belong to the one person whom he despised most: his father. Just great, he grumbled inwardly. He hadn't been having a nightmare; he had truly been captured by him and now, he couldn't even scurry away from him because of his remaining drowsiness.

"Where are we?" he groaned under his breath. He still felt more like sleeping than awakening.

He understood that he had been kept under for far longer than the normal duration of an unwilling unconsciousness or any stun blast.

"In my private refuge," his father answered, and then seemed to move closer, or at least, his breathing sound did. However, since Luke's eyes were still closed, he couldn't be certain of this. "Nobody knows about it except me."

"How very reassuring," Luke slurred while he tried to shrug off the remaining effects of his drugged sleep. "So I take it that we won't be expecting any unwanted visitors, huh?" he tried sarcastically.

"Which is better for your safety," Vader replied seriously, his voice now coming from right beside Luke's head.

Scrunching his face in a way that was meant to inform the other that the pleasantries were over, the young Jedi forced his eyes opened. He instantly realized that he was in a dark-wooden room, and that he was lying on his back on what felt to him like a regular bed. "How magnanimous of you," he commented acidly, and then turned his head around to study his new surroundings further.

To his surprise, he discovered that he was not in a cell, or even a medcenter. Instead, he was in what seemed to be a comfortable if darkly-furnished bedroom. Befuddled, he sat bolt upright and took a better look at the place.

A dark-wooden desk sat against the nearby large bay window while what looked like an holovid station sat in a corner. A commode, a night table.

He then focused on himself and noticed how he was not wearing his usual uniform but instead shorts and a tank top that would be ideal for a demanding training session. What? When?

He turned his scowling features toward the nearby man who was attentively watching his reaction to his discoveries.

"For your safety, even from yourself," Vader replied, non-committal. "I did not lie to you when I invited you to join me in my fight against the Emperor," the dark lord commented further. "However, I've also reconsidered my plan a lot since Bespin."

Luke perched an eyebrow in confusion at that.

"Besides, I can't leave you out there where 'he' might be able to capture you, so I prepared these safe quarters for you."

"Oh? So all your chasing me around, all your latest desperation to capture me," Luke replied caustically, "It was all born of a fierce, 'fatherly' desire to stash me in a safe place, huh?"

"Yes, it was," the other nodded in agreement.

Luke, however, was not feeling nearly as cooperative as Vader sounded. "And you expect me to believe you after everything you've done to me? Think again, Vader," he warned him, and then rolled off the opposite side of the bed and pushed himself to his feet.

* * *

As his son increased the distance between them while assuming a fighting stance, Anakin Skywalker sadly accepted that he had a long way to go with the youth before he could convince him of his good intentions.

But then, his newly-restored caring self reminded him, how did he expect Luke to understand that he had had a major change of heart but only 'after' their encounter on Bespin? How could he expect the youth to believe him and not think that he was trying 'again' to set him up.

Abandoning all pretense of confidence, he sat down on the dark-sheeted bed that his son had just vacated before he sighed heavily.

In front of him, the younger Jedi scowled further, his wary blue eyes locked on him while his clever mind undoubtedly tried to figure him out. "I know that I've had it backwards with you - and Leia - since the beginning, Luke."

"Leia?" the young man glowered defensively. "What does she have to do with-"

Anakin bravely raised his helmeted head and dared meet his son's defiant gaze. "She's your twin sister, Son."

* * *

"My-" Luke stuttered on his words. His twin sister? Leia? But she was a princess and he was just a farmboy, he instantly argued- and then glared daggers at the lying monster. "Why should I believe you?"

"Why should I lie?" was the other's unexpected retort. "You already know that I am your father, and that you and the princess 'somehow' share the same birth day-"

"Then why isn't she here, too, for her safety, 'father'?" he challenged him.

"I plan to bring her here as well, but in time. Right now, you and your growing Jedi powers are my priority. I also couldn't simultaneously secure the two of you without arousing the Emperor's suspicions."

"Sure," the youth shrugged, unconvinced. However, he was forced to admit that he didn't feel any lies in the other's words, and he and Leia 'did' share the same universal birth day. Still, even though he was elated by the discovery that he had a sister - and that he already knew her - he was still unable to figure out Vader's new game now. "That still doesn't explain why I'm here now. I mean aside from your regular plans of us taking over the imperial throne, of course," he finished more grimly.

Oh yes, he had once learnt that part of Vader's plans well. He did not need to be told about that anymore.

"Actually, I have also changed that part," the dark-clad man informed him quietly. "I do not intend to rule in Palpatine's place anymore; I just want to destroy him as I should have, and as a Jedi. As the last of the Jedi, it is our duty to defeat this last Sith Lord."

Luke suddenly felt as if his head was about to spin off his shoulders; the Sith was turning the right-angles corners way too fast for him to follow. Huh, destroy Palpatine? And since when was Vader thinking of himself as a Jedi? "Huh," he began confusedly yet seriously, "I'm confused... You have been killing Jedi, and chasing me, for Force knows how long – effectively making me the last of the Jedi - and now you expect me to understand, to even naively believe, that you've had a sudden change of heart and that you're Anakin once again? Just like that?"

"Well, not 'just' like that, but yes," was the honest answer. "I am Anakin Skywalker once again."

Luke's defiance rose a notch and he planted his fists on his slim hips while he scoffed in disbelief. "Do you really think that I'm stupid enough to fall head-first into your obvious lies? I know better than that – 'you' taught me better than that. Now stop trying to trick me because I will never join you. Period." He then looked around for a way out. Unfortunately, though, there didn't seem to be any obvious way out of this room, except for the main door.

He could also already feel danger in that direction which meant that he would never make it past it if he tried to cross its threshold.

Besides, he knew better than to entertain any hopes of evading Vader's presence. He had recently been taught 'that', too.

Just how in Sith had he ended up in this situation yet again?

* * *

Still sitting on the bed, the ex-Dark Lord of the Sith shook his head in mild annoyance. "Luke, why are you so doubtful about what I'm telling you?" he asked, yet already knew the answer. Still, he continued to appeal to him. "I am not lying to you, as I'm sure you can sense through the Force. Probe me if you need to; I have nothing to hide from you."

The youth was even more on his guards upon hearing his suggestion for a settlement. "Thanks, but I'll pass. As for why I don't believe you, do you want to exhaustive list, or will: "I hate you" suffice?"

"Hatred is of the Dark side, young one," was his reflexive reply. "Be wary of it."

Luke glared further at him. "Who are you to lecture me about the Dark Side? Oh, wait," he then continued mock-humorously, knocking the side of his head with the heel of his hand, "that's right, I forgot, you're my father. Well," he continued, locking his dead-serious stare on his father, "I don't acknowledge your paternal authority."

"Then at least learn from my example," Anakin retorted earnestly.

That, at last, put a damper on the child's retributions.

"I want to make the wrongs right, Son," Anakin told him while he reached out and showed to the young Jedi what he really had in mind.

The youth flinched but couldn't interrupt the contact as he would have liked.

"I don't like either what the galaxy has become," Anakin continued glumly, slumping his strong shoulders while he did so. "What 'I' have become."

For a moment, it seemed to him that he had finally breached through his son's defiance and that they would finally join forces in his multi-layered plan- but then his hopes faltered once more when the youth's eyes hardened yet again. "I simply can't believe you, Vader. You're so full of delusions that you don't even remember that you brought me here against my will, and now you want me to believe your word? Your wishes are selfish," he stated with finality, "They are clearly tainted by the Dark Side and I won't have any part in them."

Knowing when he had won, and when he had to gracefully retreat, the Dark Lord slowly stood up from his chosen seat; he slowly walked around the bed that currently separated him from his son. "I'll let you get used to your new accommodations for now. When I return, perhaps you'll be more willing to give me a chance to prove my good intentions to you," he offered in a conciliating voice.

"Wish away," Luke reflexively discouraged him even as he gave him as wide a berth as he could under the circumstances.

* * *

With what seemed like a regretful gaze, Vader turned away from the boy and walked out of the double set of doors.

Luke had barely made a move toward the apparently-accessible doors that a protection shield literally materialized between him and the wooden doors.

So much for hoping to pick the lock once he would be alone, he grimaced, and then suddenly gasped in shock and leaned heavily against the wall as the Force was brutally ripped from his still-dazed senses. What the- Dazed and thoroughly unsettled by the violent disappearance of his sixth sense, he frantically tried to fight his mental way out of whatever his father had just done to him.

It was pointless; the Dark Lord of the Sith had efficiently blocked him off from his special abilities... while leaving him breathless and in near-physical shock.

Assailed by yet another wave of nausea, the young Jedi could only sink to the floor where he hung his head in defeat.

He was done for this time... The Dark Lord had apparently thought about everything... even his skills in the Force.

Now, he could only hope that whatever Vader was doing to him at the moment wouldn't have permanent effects so that 'if' he ever found a way out of the other's attempt to control his life, he would still be a Jedi...

* * *

Just like he had planned and transmitted, it took Vader a relatively long time to rejoin the Executor. The delay gave him time to cover any tracks that could lead anyone to his son on Triffis and the secret refuge that he had built in the mountains of the planet.

His son.

Luke hadn't been ready to hear him out, he conceded as he prepared to bring his ship out of hyperspace, but the fact still remained that, at long last, Anakin Skywalker had finally awoken and acknowledged for what it was the dark reality and lies of his wasted life.

Now that he was aware of his ongoing slavery, he was ready to do everything that had to be done in order to destroy his cruel master.

He was also once again sworn to the well-being of the galaxy, and to the people he cared about.

Of course, he admitted to himself, if he had given Luke the choice about his new life, the boy would have probably been better disposed toward him, but he hadn't had time to deal with Luke's stubborn defiance and possible attempts to escape. He was acutely aware that both the Emperor and Black Sun had agents currently hunting for the powerful Jedi.

As a result, he had simply seized the unexpected golden opportunity to secure his child for good and had acted.

Now that they were together, though, the time for deceit was over, yet Luke didn't even believe his own Force feelings when he was telling him the truth.

But he 'had' to, Anakin silently pleaded with the Force while he brought his ship out of hyperspace. Everything depended on Luke's acceptance of his plan. He also had faith that his plan to free the galaxy of 'any' Emperor would be very much to Luke's liking.

More important, though, he simply needed his son's assistance as a Jedi. Without Luke, he would never be powerful enough to defeat the most powerful Sith Lord ever.

As he began his docking procedures with his flagship, Anakin made a note to himself to meditate for as long as possible so as to uncover how he could convince his son to join him.

He also forced himself to forget the details of his latest activities and instead, focused on his chosen alibi for his week-long absence from circulation, namely that his resourceful son had once again escaped him.

* * *

Two weeks later, on Coruscant, the Emperor carefully studied the Dark Lord while he knelt in front of him.

A strange current seemed to stir Vader's heart to life, he mused inwardly, but he couldn't pinpoint it. The Dark Lord had served him well in his latest mission - as always - and yet...

A troubling undercurrent remained, a stirring that he hadn't felt in his fateful, most powerful servant since...

Since the days before his wife's death, he finally identified yet refrained from smirking openly in cruel amusement.

Ah, so that was it, he reflected in mild relief while he listened to the Dark Lord's latest report about his search for the rebels and his son. Vader's current activities were awakening his memories of days long gone, which were in turn challenging his devotion to the Dark Side.

He made a note to himself not to allow those emotions to flourish anymore; he was about to make a scathing remark about what he was feeling from the now standing giant- when a flash of definite hope briefly emanated from the other man even as he pledged that he would catch his son in his next mission.

The boy, Palpatine belatedly understood in both contentment and anger. The existence of the boy was challenging the very existence of his dark Lord... who was clearly hoping to catch up with the fatherhood that had been robbed from him up to now... Yes, that was it...

Unless... another possibility belatedly occured to him in the form of a Force-vision. Unless there was more to the last reported sightings of the Jedi, weeks before, and Vader had already captured the boy but didn't mean to deliver him to his master.

Just like it had happened before, the Machiavellian man snarled inwardly when the truth finally revealed itself to him.

Yes, he hissed, this time in definite fury yet didn't show any of his antagonism at the departing man. Yes, that 'was' it. Vader was once again up to his petty little schemes and had hidden the powerful boy where he could slowly turn him to his side before using the submitted Jedi to overthrow him.

So predictable, he cackled in dark amusement once he was alone with his royal guards. He knew exactly how to handle this minor distraction, just as he knew exactly where Vader had stashed his brat this time.

In his new 'secret' refuge on Triffis.

Since he couldn't feel the boy anymore, not even if he knew where to search for him, he could only surmise that the Jedi was surrounded by ysalamiri. It pleased him since it made the brat easy picking for the agent that he would send to retrieve him.

He reached out with the Force and contacted his second best Force-empowered element, namely his favorite and most efficient Hand agent.

* * *

Less than five minutes later, his most loyal servant, a young woman, knelt respectfully at his feet.

"Rise, Emperor's Hand," he invited her magnanimously. As always, a thrill of malevolent satisfaction ran through him as his eyes rested on the result of his corruption of a strong Jedi child.

"How may I serve you, Master?" she asked him in the deferent fashion that had been drilled into her.

"You will investigate a matter of the highest importance, Mara Jade," he stated with finality.

"Yes, Master," she bowed her head once again, this time in obedience and absolute devotion.

"Lord Vader has been acting very strange lately," he informed her next. "I suspect that he might be hiding his son somewhere," he concluded without further detour.

Despite her very professional training, the assassin couldn't control her expression of surprise upon hearing this.

'Vader had a son?' he read in her unshielded mind.

'Oh, yes, he did,' the Emperor cackled inwardly at the child's shock, and a most powerful son at that.

He flicked a switch on the armrest of his throne and a screen lit up on a side wall; Skywalker's file appeared on it.

* * *

Still recovering from her previous shock, Mara Jade studied the holo of the young man who happened to be Vader's son. No matter how hard she tried to open her mind to this possibility, she simply couldn't figure how Vader could possibly have a son.

The boy looked nothing like his father either, at least figuratively speaking because she had no point of reference for a physical comparison. However, she instantly noticed that the brat wasn't even named after the powerful Sith Lord.

Skywalker? What matter of name was that? She wondered as she read the data that had been collected about the boy. A rebel commander and Jedi in-training? She frowned at that discovery.

"Lord Vader went after him a few weeks ago," her master began; she focused on his words instead of her thoughts about the young man's data profile and looks. "I suspect that Vader has captured him, but that he has hidden him away. It would not be the first time that he did so."

"I will ascertain Vader's guilt, Master," she promised her master, bowing her head yet again in absolute respect.

"Begin with Vader's new 'secret' refuge, on Triffis," the Emperor counseled with a nod of approval. "Since he foolishly thinks that no-one knows about it, I have no doubt that if he, indeed, hides the boy, it will be there."

Mara pondered this new information for a moment. "What are your orders if I find the boy, Master?" She inquired diligently.

"Bring him to me," he ordered her simply. "Soften him up on the way here. I only want him alive; the rest is up to you."

She nodded in obedience, and then studied the boy's file again. This time, her eyes rested a while longer on the enigmatic and piercing blue eyes of the young-looking man. There was something about that gaze, she mused, something that she felt she should not underestimate. "Is he a trained Jedi yet?" she finally asked her master.

"He faced his father on Bespin and escaped with only minor injuries," the Emperor answered, matter-of-fact.

He was quite powerful then, the young woman concluded. She would really have to be careful about this young and unassuming-looking man. 'But why do I feel like I've seen him before?..'

"One other thing, Mara," her master interrupted her train of thoughts. "Contact me as soon as you have found him."

When no other explanation followed, Mara understood that while her master had his reasons for such a request, he would not share those with her. She didn't mind at all. "Yes, Master."

She took the datadisk that he floated her way with the Force, and then bowed her head yet again in deference. She slowly turned on her heels before she straightened up and began her descent of the long stairs of the throne room.

With every step that she climbed down, she realized that her master genuinely expected her to find Vader's son on her first stopover.

It made her wonder how long he'd been aware of Vader's treachery, as well as if the Dark Lord of the Sith would be her next target.

Less than two hours after receiving her new mission, Mara Jade lifted off from her secret landing bay on Coruscant.

* * *

Six days, and several training sessions later, she had reached her destination.

Coming in from the night side of the planet, she swiftly reached the coordinates that her master had provided her with; they brought her at mid-level of a large mountain range, putting Vader's refuge in the center of a high mountain.

Then, identifying herself with the code that her master had given her, she approached the opening landing bay of the well-concealed installation; she breathed with more ease when she didn't trigger the refuge's bristling cannons.

Inside, droids came to her meeting, but before they processed her charade, she threw advanced restraining bolts at them. With this new danger out of the way, she entered the base proper and took her bearings. She easily identified the location of the hidden turbolift but decided against using it.

Her Force senses tingled too much in warning for her to ignore them.

However, there were no other accesses so she still had to use it if she wanted to reach another floor. She pulled her remote control from her belt and sent a droid aboard. She began directing him upward – so as to give herself access to the lower shaft of the lift from which she would be able to reach the underground, where detention levels were normally found - when a strange, pull-like sensation made her reconsider her decision; she listened to it and sent the cart downward.

She then turned on her lightsaber and cut herself and opening in the shaft. After that, she broke out her climbing gear and began what she could feel would be a very long ascension toward her target.

She only hoped that she was reading the Force correctly and that she was headed in the right direction.

TBC

* * *

Well? How was that?

If you want more, you know what to do:) And if you don't want more because of bad characterizations, lack of detail, or anything that could help me improve this story into a more edible read, I'd still like to know why (via private messaging if you prefer). However, if you simply don't like _this kind_ of story, then don't worry. To each our own :)

Have a great week-end everyone, and remember, reviews are very precious gifts all year long :) Moreover, this time, they might make me work on this story first for the next year or so ;P So? Will you vote for it? I hope so!


	3. Chapter 3

His worst Nightmare

By Mireille

2000/2012

* * *

Previously: Vader caught Luke and brought him to his secret refuge for safe keeping. Luke didn't appreciate it but was left alone for now. The Emperor figured that Vader was hiding something and sent Mara Jade to investigate the not-so-secret refuge.

* * *

Good evening everyone :)

First of all, thanks to everyone who voted for this story. I'm glad you find it worthwhile so far and I hope that your fun will continue with the new addition :)

Here is the third part of the sixth of eleven stories that I feel like writing, but can't decide which to work on first. Can you help me figure out that answer?

Important! After the fourth part, I will close the first round of the poll and focus/update only the winning story for the next year or so... The other stories will remain available but incomplete until I have finished the winner of your collective choice :)

Said winner will be the story with the most returning readers, reviews and/or alerts and comments through PMs. So, if you like this one, or if this new chapter suddenly makes this story the most interesting of the list, leave a review to vote for it as a whole :) You can also vote more than once for your favorite using PMs ;P

As of today, the vote is heading in the following direction :

1 - Unexpected (478 points)

2- Incarnations (295 points)

3 - The balance of the Force and Deceit are ex aequo (222 points)

In fifth and sixth positions are An Unfortunate Blessing and It is Useless to Resist.

If you want to try and change the direction of the vote after reading this new part, you know what to do :)

Thanks for your help! Hope you enjoy this new post as well!

If you do, please, share your thoughts :D

* * *

Disclaimers: Nothing in the Star Wars Universe belong to me; everything belongs to George Lucas. I'm only writing stories for fun.

* * *

Part 3: The plan unravels

Mara Jade had climbed up the equivalent of fourteen stories, with no results to reward her efforts- when the unusual sensation filled her mind once again.

'Skywalker,' she realized, smirking tightly in grim anticipation.

As wary as ever for hidden defense systems, the assassin cut herself an opening in the side wall of the turbolift's shaft. She allowed the loosened slab of metal to fall into the shaft before she swung herself sideways, gathering momentum a few times before she finally let go of her grip on the cable and flew sideways into the deserted corridor. With a little help from the Force, she safely made it; she crouched down, her lightsaber back in her hand, its ruby blade turned on. She then took her bearings even as she also brought out her blaster to bear. Satisfied that no one had noticed her arrival, she fastened her saber back to her belt before she straightened up and ran as quickly as she could down the very long corridor. On her way in, she reflected that considering how droids never went beyond their programming, Vader's security was all-too-easy to breach.

She turned yet another corner, and suddenly slid to a halt when she found what she was looking for... along with lethal trouble.

Even as she noticed the presence of the energy-shielded door at the end of the corridor she had just stepped in, Mara's right hand and arm acted of their own volition and she opened fire on the already firing destroyer droid. When the bolts began striking the wall behind her, she became aware that her defense came too late and she reflexively threw herself to the side; she tucked her shoulders upon landing, and then rolled back to her feet. The droid, though, didn't give her any respite and forced her to avoid his new attacks.

Moving any which way to avoid the deadly bolts of energy, the Emperor's Hand frantically raked her brain for any information that would allow her to formulate a counter-attack against this old droid model. She knew that it was made of wires, hence that if she pulled on them, she would threaten its functioning. Unfortunately, though, she didn't have the time required for her to focus and use the Force for such a feat.

She also knew that the droid's shield barely flickered off while the machine was shooting at her, only to reappear when _she_ managed to shoot back at him. Still, that was the obvious weakness that she somehow had to exploit.

But how...

Intent on avoiding yet another round of shots from the droid, she tumbled back in the direction she had come from, turned around- and gaped slightly in shock when she suddenly felt a flicker of warning through the Force just before the robot's shield winked off yet again.

The Force was back with her! That cursed Vader had set up ysalamiri around the Jedi's detention quarters! No wonder that she had felt sluggish up to now, she mentally grumbled while she took two steps further away from the shielded room.

Thanks to the fraction of preparation time that the Force now afforded her, she managed to nail the machine in the face with her more-than-accurate aim, knocking out one of its eyes. That's when an idea finally came to her.

Now aware that the Force was cut-off around the Jedi's cell, she first drew her attacker away from the overprotected door, and then used one of the machine's shots to pretend that it had knocked her blaster out of her grip. As she had surmised, it left its shield down afterward.

She took advantage of its false sense of security.

She first pirouetted into its newly-created blind spot, Force-pulling her lightsaber from her belt as she did so, and then she activated the weapon and finished her intricate maneuver with an unforgiving slash of her blade across the robot's torso.

The droid barely twittered in what sounded like shock before part of its upper body slid apart from the rest of it. It didn't even have time to try and attack her again that she had chopped off the tips of all its weapons.

She then twirled her blade around her hand and wrist and stabbed her blade straight into the droid's head. She methodically slashed it toward the left, and then the right, feeling quite satisfied by her latest victory.

Once she was certain that the mechanical threat was irreversibly deactivated, she shoved her sweat-strung braid behind her back before she straightened up and glared at the waiting door.

Vader, and/or his son, would pay for the humiliation that they had almost put her through.

* * *

Inside the locked room/cell, Luke did his best to mentally picture what could possibly cause the commotion that had suddenly replaced the pervasive silence of his cell, pulling him out of his Forceless meditation.

That couldn't be Vader, he reflected after an electronic shriek made it all the way through his thick metal but wood-covered door. The Dark Lord simply wouldn't fight against his own guardian droid.

Still, were the newcomers friends or foes as far as '_he_' was concerned? after all, anyone else but Vader would be construed as Vader's foes, but not necessarily his. Could Leia or another rebel ally have heard about his location and come to his rescue? But how would anyone discover what only Vader knew, or so the Sith had stated with utmost confidence?

And what about the Emperor's agents? Could they have found out about his whereabouts and come to take custody of him?

That didn't bode well, he concluded and began to search around himself for a means – any means - of defense. If whoever had just tangled with Vader's security system weren't an ally, and that the rebels couldn't have found where he was, then the intruder could only be an agent sent by the Emperor himself.

And he was still unable to find a weapon to defend himself with! He whined in growing despair. His _dear_ father had been thorough in his preparations of his plush cell, providing him with a completely either bolted down, set into the walls, or un-accessorized. Even his bed was sheet-less – yet extremely comfortable as was the room's warm environment - and the pillows were integrated to the sturdy mattress. As for himself, his father had left him only short and comfortable but low-quality clothes to wear so that, if he tried to use them against himself, they would rip apart long before they could harm him or, like he had unpleasantly found out, strangle him.

Vader had somehow known that, given the chance, he would take his life instead of joining him, thus had made sure that he couldn't use anything left within his reach to harm himself. He had also left a droid to watch over him and make sure that he did not starve himself either. When he had also tried that option, the droid had overpowered him while he had been asleep and had inoculated him with nutrients, turning his efforts pointless yet again.

Right now, however, he would really appreciate any thing that could be used as a weapon, even the buckle of his belt; he grumbled inwardly when the intruder managed to turn off the extra protection shield of his door.

There was no doubt left now that he was the other's target.

Sith, he had to get out of here! He quickly pushed himself against the left wall beside the unlocking door and awkwardly bladed his right hand like he had once heard about. He then lifted it in a ready position, thinking that he only had one chance to surprise his opponent and escape this new peril.

He couldn't miss, not even if he had not had proper training in that kind of assault.

It might also be his only chance to escape before his father came back to check on him.

Less than a second later, the invader finished to unlock the door. Luke nervously waited while the thick doors slid aside, and then as the other's armed right hand and arm slowly penetrated past the door frame.

'Hit the neck; hit it right!' he needlessly advised himself even as he tried to remember everything that he had been told about the technique that he had in mind. He forced himself to wait for the intruder to take an extra step forward, aware that he himself would then be in a better position to attack the enemy.

Then, even as the imperial took another step inside and turned toward the opposite wall, Luke realized that the Emperor's agent was female and that she had stunning red-gold hair. He quickly assessed her with his eyes, wondering if she could be someone other than an imperial agent. That thought made him hesitate, and that proved to be unwise.

The moment that she turned her head toward him, he understood that he had dangerously underestimated his opponent, which had just cost him his opportunity to strike and escape.

He still hurried to attack the alert woman before it was too late.

His attack was swift and perfect, but so was his opponent's physical defense against it. The imperial nimbly ducked his falling hand, and then she turned on her hips and half-crouched legs and swiftly straightened up, effectively shoving him off the floor and hard into the wall and the sharp corner of the door frame.

He winced and gasped for air while she let him back down on his wobbly feet, but then she didn't give him time to mount his defense before she took hold of his right arm and wrenched it almost out of its socket in one swift move even as she pulled his head down and toward her rising left knee. She hit him hard in the nose, making him yelp in suffering.

He was thoroughly dazed and fighting against his need to pass out when she hit him again, this time with the butt of her blaster against the base of his cranium.

He barely grunted before his senses finished eluding him even before he had collapsed on the floor. His last thought was that he was once again passing out during a fight with a mortal enemy and that it wasn't a healthy habit...

* * *

Even though her prey now laid at her feet, Mara Jade remained on her guard.

If he truly was related to Vader, then this apparent defeat could easily be a trick designed to make her lower her guard. She gazed down at his prone short-clad form and, with a not-too-gentle push of her right foot, rolled him on his back.

The moment that he groaned weakly in complaint, she stunned him. 'I should have done that right away,' she rebuked herself like her trainers would if she were still in her trials. Aware that she was still in enemy territory, she hurried to secure her blaster in her wrist holster before she grabbed hold of Skywalker's limp arms. She then positioned herself in front and astride of his legs and pulled his limp form into a sitting position.

She then meant to hoist his compact weight on her shoulders and leave the place, but instead, her eyes suddenly settled on his unconscious features; with his head hanging backward from his limp neck like it was, she could finally scrutinized them; she noticed his newly-bleeding nose... and then focused on his fair hair...

They were fairer than on the holo that the Emperor had shown her when he had given her that mission, her mind noted clinically.

The feeling of deja vu that had crept on her while in the Emperor's presence then returned, stronger than before. Why did she feel as if she should recognize that Jedi?..

Dismissing her questions for later, she abandoned her study of his unconscious features and finally pulled his weight onto her shoulders.

Although she was extremely well trained and strong for a woman, the compact weight of her temporary-debilitated prisoner proved to be a greater challenge than she had first estimated. She quickly realized that she couldn't go down the way she had arrived.

While she shifted her grip on him so as to use her remote control for her ship, she discovered the reason for this extra and uncalculated weight when one of his bare arms dangled in front of her eyes: the Jedi was much more muscular than she had surmised upon her first exchange of hits with him.

It strangely reminded her of one other man whom she had wrongly assessed... so long ago that she didn't even remember his features anymore.

Rebuking herself again for her unusual lack of focus, she forced herself to walk as fast as she could toward the room's viewport. Her ship was almost already there, and she could feel that she was better advised not to overstay her _welcome_ in Vader's secret lair.

On her shoulders and unaware of his predicament, the captive Jedi remained unconscious, even when she cut herself an opening in the transparisteel of his bay-window.

Forty-eight minutes after landing on Triffis, Mara Jade was leaving again, her mission accomplished. She contacted her master as per his orders.

* * *

When Luke's senses deigned return to him, his ears instantly picked up on the sound of rattling chains even as he felt an all-too-familiar tightening around his left wrist.

Cuffs! He instantly identified. He reflexively jerked his still-recovering body in an attempt to pull himself free of the not-yet locked restraint.

He yelped in pain when his right shoulder complained vividly against his unwise move and he realized that his right wrist was already locked in chains while his left one was physically held in place by his captor's strong hands.

Even as he became aware of the woman's presence against the length of his bare left side, his captor finished locking his wrist in the left cuff. He tried to kick her away from him, only to realize that his now bare feet were also restrained.

"Awake already?" she noted once she pulled away from his recovering and only shorts-covered form.

Luke glared blaster bolts at her while the throbbing of his head and nose reminded him of his very brief fight against her. "Who are you?" he growled defiantly despite his remaining wooziness. "What do you want with me?"

"My master asked me to deliver you to him, Jedi, and I always obey my master."

"And you master is the Emperor," he concluded, feeling his heart wilt upon confirming the identity of his true captor.

Unless his father somehow _rescued_ him again, he was done for. He was once again bereft of the Force, was even more restrained than in his previously simply-furnished if comfortable cell... and he was about to be tortured! He realized when the all-too-familiar spherical droid floated up from a corner of the cell. No! He pleaded inwardly even as he strained against his bonds. Please, not again!

In front of him, the deceptive beauty tilted her head in polite surprise at his previous statement. "You are quite clever, indeed, Skywalker. It's a pity that your father isn't and tried to double-cross our master," she concluded in what sounded like regret to him.

Regret? An imperial agent? He frowned in bemusement. Nah, he was just already losing it because of his increasing panic about his latest bad predicament.

Sith, if only his father had left him alone and free, he wouldn't be in this nightmarish position. "I didn't join him!" He stated quickly when the woman moved to leave him to the droid's _care_. "Believe me, please," he begged earnestly.

The red-head first seemed confused by his plea, and then noticed how he tried to cringe away from the approaching droid.

"Please," Luke tried again, feeling as if the woman '_did_' have regrets about his upcoming torture. "I know that you have to punish me for being on Vader's side, but I never was, please!" he begged again.

To his horror, whatever opening he had apparently breached with the woman, it closed up as instantly as it had appeared. She shook her now loosened red-gold hair in refusal. "I have my orders, Jedi. I'm sorry."

She then turned her back to his horrified expression and swiftly walked out of the small cell.

"No, wait!" Luke tried again in despair, "please don't-" He didn't have time to finish his sentence before the cell's door closed between them. The moment that the door sealed, the chains that held his arms aloft retreated in the ceiling, pulling his weight from the deck; it was a weight that his half-dislocated right shoulder was in no shape to bear.

Worse, it was the last pull that it needed to completely dislocate; Luke wailed in agony as the bone painfully finished sliding out of its capsule. Then, as if it wasn't enough, the heartless torture droid hovered closer, a nasty-looking device primed and ready to torment him.

With whatever awareness he had left, he prayed the Force to grant him either instant unconsciousness or death.

* * *

When the strangely disturbing screams of pain made it through the door of the locked cell, Mara sought refuge in the doubly sealed cockpit of her ship.

Normally, she didn't feel anything if her prisoners underwent torture during their transit to Coruscant, but this time, she could barely restrain herself from going back in the cell and knock the Jedi out for the duration of the transition.

In fact, the moment that she had seen him awake, and thus had truly met his blue glare, she had felt unusually uncomfortable in his chained presence. Hence, whereas she normally taunted her preys with what she knew about their upcoming fate, this time, she had been so taken by the other's unexplainably enrapturing features that she had barely been able to maintain her cool composure.

She had also been thoroughly unable to hold a cold-hearted conversation when he had addressed her.

If not for her professional training, as well as her stark fear of her master's reaction if she ever disobeyed or failed him - she would have even freed the Jedi and let him go.

But what was it about that Jedi? She wondered as she re-checked her programmed jump toward Coruscant. What was different about him that made her react as if she weren't a cold-blooded assassin?

Well, for one thing, she answered herself, he was a _young_ Jedi, probably around her age, too.

Next, he was Vader's son, yet the two men were nothing alike as far as she could tell from their short conversation. The son's uncovered face also intrigued her, making her wonder if the father resembled him beneath that mask of his.

Finally, she couldn't help but believe that she should recognize the youth from some other place.

It had been that strange feeling that had restrained her from shooting him in the leg when she had found him ready to attack her. It was why she had merely knocked his lights out and had even forgot to stun him afterward.

Still, she pondered next, from where would she know the rebel Jedi? She was positive that she had never crossed path with him in the palace – if he had grown up there - and her missions in rebel groups had never involved the Jedi's group either.

Besides, if she had ever crossed path with the powerful youth, she would have felt it; if he hadn't been with them yet, she would have even been duty-bound to bring him to her master. Yet, in spite of all her rationalisation, her illogical feeling wouldn't leave her.

Perhaps the Jedi would help her uncover the reason for her strange belief, at least once her master would have broken him and would allow her to interact with their new ally.

She dimly hoped that she wouldn't be around to witness the Jedi's breaking. She knew what it portended, and she wasn't sure that she would be able to remain aloof in the Jedi's case.

Still, in less than four days, she concluded after her gaze settled on her ship's navicomputer, she would either obey her master and be involved in the Jedi's '_welcome_', or she would be given a new mission and leave the boy behind.

Whatever it would be, though, she would have no other choice but to serve her master devotedly and obediently.

It was her one and only reason to live.

* * *

When no other new pain assailed him anymore, Luke was in such bad shape that he wasn't certain if the droid had truly reached the end of its cruel programming, or if he was just finally growing insensitive to the unrelenting pain, so used was he to the torturing sensation.

Ever since the woman had left his cell, he had been screaming and howling his head off in agony, kept awake and aware by numerous shots of adrenaline whenever he even '_felt_' like passing out.

Whatever the cause of his respite was, though, he welcomed it, or at least he welcomed what little respite he was afforded because he was not completely off the hook; his stretched limbs continued to torture him, all of them cruelly pulling at his horribly-dislocated right shoulder, and his fresh injuries burnt from infection and their exposure to the stale air of his cell.

Still, it was better than facing the Emperor, he reflected, woozily- and then stopped on his thought.

The Emperor...

Coruscant.

They had reached Coruscant and that was why his torture had come to an end. He groaned in misery. Soon, the woman would come for him and bring him to her master, like she had said she would.

No! He pleaded inwardly even as he tried to summon the strength that he needed to at least move. Unfortunately between his not-so-subtle-torment, his bleeding injuries and the droids repeated blood extractions, he barely had enough energy left to keep his eyes open.

He was done for... and all that because of his father's intervention in his life, he dimly thought in resentment. If only he hadn't been trapped without the Force... If only he had been free when he had faced the woman...

If only he hadn't been on that cursed planet at all...

The swishing sound of an opening power door reached his half-deafened ears. He tried to raise his head and glare at his captor.

It was an impossible feat in his condition.

His bonds suddenly opened and he crumpled hard on the deck. His senses eluded him when his head finally hit the deck.

* * *

When she stepped inside the prisoner's cell, Mara couldn't help but flinch in sympathy.

The Jedi was a sight.

Her master would be pleased, she reminded herself, but somehow, that didn't bring her the usual comfort; she simply and honestly didn't like to see _that_ particular young man in pain, yet she couldn't help him in anyway either.

Sighing in reluctance, she motioned to the accompanying royal guards to prepare him for his delivery to the Emperor. They had landed on Coruscant a little over five minutes ago, her ship secreted away in the Emperor's private landing bay near his throne room. In a few more minutes, she would complete her mission and abandon the young man to her master's heartless care.

Abandon? She frowned inwardly. Since when did she think so negatively of her actions toward a prisoner? And when had she begun to criticize her master's actions with the said prisoners? Shaking her head to rid it of any further foolish ideas, she threw a glance in the droid's direction. Morbidly curious despite herself, she stepped closer to it and read its dials.

She couldn't help but gape in amazement when she discovered that the Jedi's resistance was still strong in spite of what had already been done to him. He had not had _any_ reprieve since they had left Triffis. She refocused her impressed gaze on the once again aware and moaning prisoner. He was powerful all right. No one remained strong-willed this long while undergoing the treatment that he had experienced even from the start.

Not even herself.

"Please...," the beleaguered man begged once the troopers had pulled him into an upright position and locked his hands behind his back in spite of the Jedi's dislocated shoulder. "Please," he tried again, searching her eyes with his. "Just kill me..." he half-whispered, and then let his head hang down once again as if that mere action had drained him of all his energy.

It probably had, too, she surmised while she stepped closer to him. Headstrong or not, his body still had its limits. His mind, though, was as sharp as ever... it was merely clouded by pain and despair.

She winced again at that thought- and then caught herself before anyone could see or '_feel_' her lapse of composure. For a long moment, she studied his weakened body.

In the end, she had no choice but to admit that she couldn't fathom how he could still muster the energy to even be conscious and aware of his predicament.

Stifling an urge to apologize to him for putting him through this, she hurriedly turned heels so as to block out his tormenting sight. "The Emperor is your master now, Jedi. _He_ will decide your fate," she said as coldly as she could manage before she walked out of the oppressive cell.

Behind her, the royal guards followed her while the Jedi naturally tried to struggle even though he quickly lost the fight against his own body.

His unconsciousness made it easier for her to complete her mission without any further mishap.

She only hoped that the Emperor hadn't been listening on her while she had been in the Jedi's cell. Otherwise, she, too, would be punished.

In her case, it would be for disobedience.

* * *

TBC

Well? How was that? How did you like Mara's fight against the destroyer droid? or against Luke? What think will happen next? (and for those of you who remember the old story, let's just say that this new edition goes further than the previous one went, so if you think you already know, be ready to be surprised along the way :)

If you want more, you know what to do:) And if you don't want more because of bad characterizations, lack of detail, or anything that could help me improve this story into a more edible read, I'd still like to know why (via private messaging if you prefer). However, if you simply don't like this 'kind' of story, or if it's not your style of story, then don't worry. To each our own :)

Have a great week everyone, and remember, reviews are very precious gifts all year long :) Moreover, this time, they might make me work on this story first for the next year or so ;P So? Will you vote for it? I hope so!


	4. Chapter 4

His worst Nightmare

By Mireille

2000/2012

* * *

_Previously_: After Vader captured Luke, he brought him to his secret refuge on Triffis. There, he tried to make him believe that he had changed and that he only wanted to protect him from the Emperor until the Sith was destroyed, but Luke didn't believe him. Left there for his own protection, Luke became prey to Mara Jade, who was sent by the Emperor to capture Vader's secret and bring him to Coruscant. On his way to the Sith master, the Jedi was kept under constant torture.

* * *

Good afternoon everyone! First of all, thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story's last post! Your comments really meant a lot to me!

Thanks as well for the favorites and alerts. I still hope to one day hear your thoughts in more details :)

* * *

Here is the fourth part of the first of eleven stories that I felt like writing, but couldn't decide which to work on first.

After a whole summer of leaving the choice up to you, my valued readers, His Worst Nightmare finished 11th. Therefore, while I will still add to this story on few occasions a year (like during vacation times), my focus will be on other stories for now. However, you know how to make me want to add more to this faster, right? ;P

Yup, you got it ;) You have to hit the button at the bottom of this post and do your reader thing :)

Please, don't hesitate to share your thoughts :D

* * *

Disclaimers: Nothing in the Star Wars Universe belong to me; everything belongs to George Lucas. I'm only writing stories for fun.

* * *

Part 4: His worst Nightmare

Although he still appeared unconscious, Luke's senses resumed drifting in and out after his group boarded a private turbolift where they were alone with their top-secret Jedi prisoner.

'I have my orders,' he dimly remembered hearing from the woman when he had first awoken in her company. He knew all too well what her orders were... what they involved for him.

How could anybody be so heartless? He wondered next. And a woman to top it all… a beautiful woman... A disguised demon from Hell.

Hell where her master eagerly awaited him...

Her master... the Emperor.

Sith, he barely groaned in frustration. He was afraid to be even a thousand meters near the Emperor, let alone in his claws.

He only wanted his life the way it had been before back on Tatooine, when he had been poor, powerless, but Happy... How could his life have changed so much that it had come to involve the cruelest monsters in the history of the galaxy?.. What had he done to deserve such torment?..

And why wasn't he summarily executed like all the other Jedi had been ever since the inception of the Imperial regime? Why did the Imperials want him so much that they kept resorting to torture to break his will and resistance against them?.. What did they know about him that even he himself didn't?

He tried to make his body struggle against his predicament; it unfortunately ignored his commands and remained limp in the Imperials' grasps even as the lift continued its ascension toward its destination.

Darn, he felt as if he didn't have a say anymore on the course of his life.

In fact, he felt as if his free will had already been twisted out of his grasp and ripped away from him, and that he was about to become nothing but someone's toy.

Had this been pre-ordained by the Force? He pondered worriedly. Or was it happening because he shouldn't have left the farm?

Was there any way out for him, now?

Suicide was impossible, he tiredly remembered. While aboard the woman's ship, he had discovered that the darksiders took several precautions to prevent such action from his part as well as knew how to make sure that he quickly gave up on that kind of idea. They also excelled at letting him waste his strength and will in defiance while still wearing him down.

Kreth, he whimpered weakly, he was no match for these monsters... He was done for...

'Thanks for nothing, '_Father_'...' He cursed his sire for ever sleeping with his mother and create him... After all, he had never asked to be born in the first place.

Had he?..

He let his tears leave the corners of his eyes as his despair flooded his mind once again. He couldn't bear the idea of new torment being inflicted upon him, yet... he couldn't bow to the Emperor either... He just couldn't... become like his father...

He prayed the Force to give him the strength to survive the upcoming challenge, and then he also begged it to convince the Emperor to merely kill him.

The Emperor... the most powerful Sith Lord of all times...

As if on cue, the turbolift stopped its ascension and his group stepped out of it and into a darker than dark room.

The Emperor's throne room, he realized.

In front of him, the woman led the way up long stairs; his guards carried him after her, ignoring his muted complaints that were due to his dragging legs and feet. No matter how much Luke wanted to resist them, he couldn't. His body simply refused to waste his remaining energies on what would be a futile fight.

Once they had reached the last landing, his carriers violently shoved him down at the deck; Luke groaned and keened in agony as he crashed face-first on the carpeted steel deck, and then shrieked uncontrollably when he fell on his bad shoulder. Before he could recover his senses from that latest jolt of pain, the royal guards painfully grabbed hold of his shoulders and hair and pulled him back up and into a kneeling position.

This time, Luke couldn't help but howl in renewed torture as his dislocated right shoulder was touched yet again. If not for the guards' grip on his hair and left shoulder, he would have slumped back to the deck in agony.

While he'd been strung up in his cell, he hadn't realized how weak he'd become, but now that he had to hold himself upright, he could '_appreciate_' the full range of his injured status. Perhaps he would die after all, he thought hopefully.

A grating voice unfortunately answered him this time. "Oh no, my young friend, death will never be an option for you, as you already guessed."

Even though he had been aware of his group's destination, Luke still gasped in horror when he heard his nemesis' dreaded voice. Chills ran down his spine as he finally opened his heavy-lidded eyes and spotted the throne's occupant. They were face to face now, he winced; the Sith Lord was already leaning eagerly forward and toward him.

"Welcome back, Mara Jade," the Emperor temporarily ignored him, focusing his hooded features on the standing woman at Luke's side. "You have done wonderfully."

"Thank you, Master," the red-head bowed in deference.

Luke grimaced at that and turned his gaze down once again. Such despising slavery...

"And welcome to you as well, young Skywalker," his arch-nemesis greeted him next. Luke didn't look at him but felt all the same that the other's unwavering attention was now riveted on him. "I've been expecting this moment for a long while now," he all but whispered greedily.

"Not long enough," Luke muttered under his breath. He looked back up and glared as defiantly as he could at the sitting old man.

It was an unwise action because the mere movement of his neck awakened thousands of shards of pain in his back and body. Even worse, the guards' pressure against the back of his head reached all the way into his right shoulder the moment that he even minutely shifted his head upward.

He hissed once again, this time in reaction to his own actions.

"You're dismissed, Emperor's Hand" the Emperor said curtly to his faithful servant, his eyes never leaving his prize's broken form.

The red head bowed obediently and turned around to leave. Luke would have dismissed her from his mind as well, but he noticed how she threw him a green gaze that could only be described as apologizing before she quickly walked out of his line of sight and headed back down the long stairs.

'_That_', he had to admit, had been unexpected.

The Emperor waited for rest of them to be alone before he stood up and walked slowly toward him, as if savouring the moment. "Such arrogance," he finally chortled once he stood right in front of his new slave.

While Luke didn't dare crane his neck and upset his body further, the guards that held him up had no such compunction and forced his head backward so that he reluctantly looked up at the imperial ruler.

The youth couldn't restrain his moan of complaint and it pleased the Emperor further.

Palpatine then reached out with a spindly hand and stroked the Jedi's bruised right cheek with the back of his index finger. "Your father was right, young man; you will be a powerful servant, indeed."

Luke wished that he could pull his head away from the other's reach, but he knew better than to move yet again, and especially of his own volition. "I will never serve you," he spat angrily.

"Never say never to me, my young Sithling," the Sith master retorted, abruptly vehement, and then before Luke had sensed his intention, he swiftly extended his hand further toward him. This time, he grabbed hold of his hair and viciously forced the youth's head further backward.

Luke yelped and flinched as he met the Emperor's sulphurous glare for the first time ever.

He decided that there definitely was something creepy about that inhuman glare.

"You are mine now, boy," the Emperor all but spat in his face, "and what is mine obeys me or is punished."

"I will never be yours, tyrant," he growled in answer while he did his best not to pass out from the burning pain that was relentlessly assaulting his neck and shoulders.

It hurt, but he could bear- All of a sudden, an indescribable jolt of searing agony seemed to jump from the Emperor's hand and right into his own brain, instantly making him forget what he had been thinking about.

It was all he could do not to black out.

"Language, my child," the Emperor hissed angrily in his right ear while he lessened the intensity of his punishment yet didn't interrupt it, "You will call me Master or I'll-"

A call signal suddenly attracted the Sith's attention away from his tormented captive. Then, to Luke's faint befuddlement yet ever-lasting relief, the cruel man let go of him and answered the call, temporarily putting an end to his torment.

The Jedi was too grateful to be off the hook to wonder about the cause of his enemy's change of plan.

Then, when the guards released him from their unrelenting grasps, he bent over in agony and rolled onto his left side even as he tuned out the rest of his predicament. His mind was still ringing from the attack it had just suffered and he couldn't relieve the overwhelming pain in any way.

He also yearned for unconsciousness, yet '_really_' didn't dare black out in the Emperor's presence. After all, who knew what the other would do to him if he ever dropped his last barrier of resistance?..

His will to resist was the only resource he had left now, yet as long as he had it, he was still safe.

In a way.

"Most excellent," the snake answered his unknown caller. "Bring him in at once," he ordered next.

'Another male prisoner?' Luke thought in concern when his ears resumed functioning properly. Here with him? It could only mean that he had captured... No, he begged the Force, not Han, too!

He forced his eyes to open; he almost regretted that action for the Emperor had refocused his attention on him. His arch-nemesis now bore a feral smile that made Luke cringe in deep-seated terror.

This was a nightmare, he thought in despair and closed his eyes against the harsh reality of the moment. It couldn't be happening. It couldn't.

"Your father has decided to pay us a little visit, my friend," the older man then informed him almost cordially.

Luke's thoughts came to a halt upon hearing his words. Huh? His father? Vader? But why was Vader's arrival announced to the Emperor as if he were a prisoner? And why wasn't Vader here with the despot anyway? Surely he had been playing tricks on him and this was yet an elaborate set-up to lure him to '_their_' side.

Besides, even if the Dark Lord of the Sith did want to overthrow the Emperor, he was still evil incarnate.

He lamented again when the guards grasped his right arm yet again and forced him back into a kneeling position. Something was not right, he dimly reflected, doing his best to keep track of the ongoing events even though he was '_this_' close from passing out altogether. He lacked a crucial detail that would allow him to make sense of the current events.

He also wasn't in any condition to do much in-depth analysis.

As if sensing his inner turmoil, the Emperor smirked down at him, his mean expression making Luke shudder in utter revulsion. "Soon, you will have your answers and more, my child." He made a slight motion with his hand and Luke suddenly found himself held still by invisible Force bonds even as he was Pushed back to his feet and into the guards' waiting grasps.

"Take him and remain in the shadows until I give you the signal to join us," the Emperor ordered his servants.

The silent red-clad guards obeyed without a word.

Luke, for his part, groaned in foreknowledge – and thus found out that he was suddenly mute as well.

Incensed by that unpleasant discovery, he called on the Force to fight against the bonds that held him in more than a physical way, to no avail.

Meanwhile, the royal guards had stepped into a shadow-blanketed corner where they made him face the far end of the throne room. Luke still tried to fight them off, but he was efficiently and completely kept paralyzed and silent by whatever was Binding him.

He had barely taken stock of the situation that the private turbolift opened once again to allow passage to newcomers.

Vader came in, but he was, like him, accompanied by guards who were dressed from head to toes in crimson red; Luke belatedly noticed that the Dark Lord was, also like him, a prisoner, although he was able to walk on his own.

'What?' He frowned in baffled confusion.

He wanted to ask what was going on, and even considered Reaching out to check on Vader's thoughts, but a sudden jolt of pain in his head swiftly convinced him to abandon that idea.

When he recovered from this new discipline, he knew that something '_quite_' unusual was about to happen... He could Feel it.

* * *

In the stairs of the throne room, the guards and Vader climbed up, the three of them holding themselves as straight-backed as ever.

'As proud as he has ever been,' Luke reflected while he groggily studied the approaching Dark Lord. Whatever was about to happen, his sire obviously had no intention to allow the Emperor to intimidate him.

'Kind of like me,' he realized in mild unease before he closed his eyes in confusion. Huh? Him? Sharing common points with Vader?

That new thought didn't sit well at all with him.

In the stairs, the group had reached the last landing before the throne's platform. The newly-arrived Royal Guards stopped Vader from stepping closer and violently knocked him behind the knees with their force pikes.

The tall cyborg fell down with barely a moan of complaint, but he did make a strange noise that was most unfamiliar to the Jedi's ears.

"Lord Vader," the Emperor greeted maliciously from the last landing of the stairs. "My trustee right arm, my old friend and apprentice... did you really think that I wouldn't know if you ever tried again to betray me?" he suddenly snarled in hatred.

"Master," the other bowed his head in deference.

Or dread, Luke froze in unpleasant surprise.

"I have proof that whoever made up that new lie is-"

"Silence," the despot barked hatefully, backhanding his apprentice with the Force as he did so.

Through the Force, Luke Felt that the impact had reached under the other's helmet, thus hurting him for real. He surmised that the Emperor was truly upset with Vader this time.

"You are still much too naive, my '_friend_'. Despite all your so-called barriers and years of training, I can still effortlessly read your heart and mind; I don't need sycophants to be informed of your projects and actual traitorous actions."

Although the older prisoner wore a mask and helmet that completely concealed his face from sight, Luke had the distinct feeling that his father had suddenly paled under the other's meaningful accusations.

True accusations, too.

How would he get out of this one? He wondered despite his despise for the older man.

In answer, the new Royal Guards swiftly stepped away from the fallen man and a volley of jagged blue bolts hit the Dark Lord fully in the chest, the strength of the impact toppling him to the side.

For the second time in his life, Luke heard the tall monster express pain. However, unlike the cut that he himself had inflicted upon him on Bespin, this new level of agony was such that Vader's abnormal cry of pain truly tore at Luke's heart and soul.

His father was in agonizing torment.

He was getting some of his medicine, Luke realized, but what surprised him was that he himself wasn't overjoyed by it. Indeed, he should have been jumping for joy that Vader would feel something akin to what he'd put him through the last times that they had met, but he was only saddened that this man, who'd fathered him, had to suffer again. He was even tempted to try and help him out of this predicament.

He didn't deserve '_that_' kind of torment, he thought while he closed his eyes against the frightening scene. No one deserved that kind of evil punishment, he was certain of that.

To Luke's horror, he then realized that the blue bolts of deadly energy specifically attacked Vader's remaining flesh-and-blood body; the Emperor was actually Shielding his life-sustaining systems so as to keep his victim alive afterward. For what felt like an eternity to Luke, the ravaging electricity continued to dance over the Dark Lord and through it all, the Jedi fought hard against his reflexive desire to reach out and help the once Anakin Skywalker to escape this torment. However, the increased pressure on his mind – and the pain that was threatening to follow if he acted any further - helped him to keep himself in check.

At long last, the sickening sound of lightning and screams of hideous suffering died out as the Emperor put an end to his attack. "You have served me well for many years, Vader," he commented in condescendence while he climbed down the few steps that separated him from Vader's prone and debilitated form. "But your time is over. I had been considering your replacement for some time but your betrayal hastened the process. Your son will do perfectly in your stead."

The weakened Sith Lord strained as much as possible to muster his strength to speak through his still-functional vocoder; his prosthetics had all been fried into uselessness, making it impossible for him to do anything else. "I will... never... never let you defile my son's soul the way you did mine."

Luke was stumped by the Sith's earnest vow to protect him even in face of imminent death and he belatedly understood that his father had been telling him the truth about his goals and hopes.

Vader had truly wanted to destroy the Emperor so as to free both himself and his son from the Sith's danger. Luke could also Feel that his father had never meant to hurt him this time around; that Anakin had realized a tad too late that what he had done already was horrible beyond imagination.

Luke had failed to understand that the fallen Jedi had wanted to make amends for his mistakes and that Anakin Skywalker had honestly wanted to be the father that he had never been before.

And he, he froze in horror, stupid farmboy that he was, had turned him down because he had been unable to see past the dark mask and helmet that concealed the real man from his eyes.

'No...' he thought in despair, it couldn't be happening like this... What had he done? If he had taken his father's offer, they would probably not be in this nightmarish predicament because he wouldn't have been left alone in a gilded cell. Stupid, foolish, hard-headed-

The Emperor chose that moment to gesture in his direction; his guards brought him out of the shadows and threw him down to the deck where he painfully rolled all over himself before he finally - gratefully - came to a halt in front of his father and at Palpatine's feet.

By then, he had recovered his voice and could once again yell in agony as his different physical injuries cried out in burning complaint almost simultaneously against his rough treatment.

* * *

Anakin had been preparing himself for a last all-out Force attack on the approaching despot when a familiar voice – a voice that was sadly screaming once again in pain - attracted his attention to the upper dais. 'No!' He blanched further at the sight of his battered, clearly tormented and bound son slumped on the deck and at Palpatine's feet, as if he were already a slave grounded under his master's heel.

No, it couldn't be; Luke couldn't be here. He was safe on Triffis, protected by destroyer droids and an ysalamiri-shrouded Force-field- He glared back at the Sith master when he finally understood what had happened; one of his agents – probably the Jade girl - had broken through his security.

If he were given the chance, he silently swore in outrage, he would kill both Sidious '_and_' her.

"Luke," he whispered weakly, the only sound he was able to make anymore. He wanted to go to his son, to hold him in his arms while slaughtering with utmost prejudice those who had dared torment him, but it was not to be. "I'm so sorry," he apologized sorrowfully, casting his eyes and head down in regret.

Although their eyes met, Luke was equally too exhausted and weakened to say anything. Worse, while Anakin was unable to pull himself into a less vulnerable position, he could see that Luke's had trouble merely breathing because of his horribly-sprained shoulder and its resulting agony.

The Emperor cackled victoriously at both fallen adversaries. "Oh, don't be sorry, Vader. Your past services have ensured a grand future for your offspring."

Anakin glared up again at the tyrant. The Hell he would let him transform Luke into a monster- He froze when he noticed that the Emperor held a remote control device in his right hand. Oh no, he cringed in instantaneous foreknowledge.

"But your latest betrayal have marked the end of your own usefulness to me," Palpatine went on, concluding his previous statement. He then smirked maliciously at him. "You know what this is, don't you, my '_friend_'?" he taunted him.

A remote control for his survival suit, Anakin realized, way too late. Up until now, he had never even considered the possibility that the Sith master controlled his life not only through his way of life, but also through the settings of his armor as well. Now, however, he understood that the fiend had not only tricked him into betraying the Jedi, but he had also made sure to always retain control of him by fitting him into a special suit that served his numerous purposes including his physical supremacy over his powerful slave. "Monster," he spat hatefully- and then whimpered in pain when his heart suddenly clenched in his chest while his lungs began to burn for air.

Unlike what he had expected, Palpatine didn't kill him outright but instead dramatically lowered the settings of his vital functions until he was barely alive anymore. His remaining strength swiftly abandoned him and he slumped even further to the deck, gasping for air while he began to see black spots in front of eyes.

'He would have stopped me the same way in any given circumstances,' Anakin belatedly understood and cursed his own naivety. His plans to destroy the demonic Dark Lord of the Sith had been ill-fated from the beginning; even with Luke at his side, he himself would have been forfeited the moment that they would have stood in front of the Emperor.

"Indeed, my foolish apprentice," the Emperor sneered down at him before he viciously pushed him on his back and flicked his index finger at him.

His mask and helmet were Forcefully removed from his head, hurting him by grinding painfully against his scarred flesh on their way up his head. He gasped further for air yet he still didn't die.

"Death would be too swift a punishment for you, traitor," the despot answered his unspoken thoughts. "You deserve a far worse punishment, and I believe that feeling like you did when I found you and saved you should be appropriate. Do you?" he jeered coldly at him.

Anakin, whose eyes were once again crystal blue, wanted to glare at him, to spit in his face and at least kick him off his feet with a powerful swipe kick of his left leg or even with the help of the Force. However, his mind was stronger than his body now and his overwhelming suffering was also cutting him off from the Force.

He just couldn't focus long enough to find his center and use it like he normally could.

*Father!.." a young voice whispered in his mind- and was silenced once again by a Force blow that shoved Luke out of his head.

Tears filled Anakin's eyes while he slowly tilted his head toward his son's location. The youth was once again dazed, his face covered by a grimace even as his body's movements pulled at his different injuries. "Luke," he croaked as loudly as he could.

His voice was barely above a whisper but it was still enough to attract the boy's attention back to him. Blue eyes met blue eyes.

"You were... right," the older Skywalker admitted shamefully. He should have let his son go free when he had the chance...

The young Jedi's eyes filled with tears as they continued to hold gazes.

It would be a face and an expression that Anakin would never forget, something that he had wished to avoid at all costs, yet had caused thanks to his stupid arrogance.

Again.

"This is truly touching, Skywalker," the Emperor's raspy voice interrupted. "In a way, I am even content that you and your offspring have seen each other this one last time. Now, you will always remember how you could have been with him under my service, and how you instead chose to betray me only to lose him anyway."

"Fiend," Anakin spat, locking his defiant blue gaze on the Sith's looming silhouette.

"I would have also killed you swiftly when the boy would have been ready to replace you, but now that you have earned my wrath, you shall be in unceasing throes of agony for as long as even the most-advanced medical treatments can't keep your then extreme old age from finally killing you." He turned his back to him. "Take him away."

The fallen Jedi wanted to fight against the guards' action, wanted to stay with his son for what was about to happen to him, but what his mind could think of, his body was simply unable to perform.

He was like a rag doll and any kind of touch or movement awakened thousands of shards of worst suffering in what was left of his original body. In a way, he was lucky that he had learnt to deal with pain on a daily basis or he'd truly be overwhelmed by his new predicament.

Still, used to pain or not, he remained unable to do what mattered the most to him at the moment, namely to save Luke.

Too quickly for him, the guards took him aboard a second secret turbolift – one that he hadn't known existed in the throne room - cutting him off from his son...

His son, whose fate was about to be forced into a new and darker direction than he had ever feared possible for the last vestige of the man he had once been... with '_her_'.

* * *

Up on the dais, Luke kept his eyes locked on his father's receding form for as long as he could. Vader had said the truth to him... He had reached out to him as a father to a son, a returned Jedi to a newly-trained Jedi... but he himself had slapped his offer back at him without so much as a word of acknowledgment for his effort to return from the path of darkness. 'Father,' he thought in defeat, 'I'm so sorry I didn't believe you...'

Who knew where they would be today if he hadn't been his usual stubborn self with the newly-redempted Anakin? With... his father.

He would bet his own life that they would not be in the hands of the Sith master, both of them already tortured by him one way or another and with more suffering in store for them.

At first, he had been uneasy with his father's unmasked and horribly-scarred face, but when the older man had strained against his tormented body to gaze up at him, that unease had been replaced by a profound sense of regret and love. His father had turned back too late to really do any good, but he had still been determined to make amends even in his debilitated state.

And he had told him that he had been right... But had Anakin meant that Luke had been right to think that Vader should have left him out of his plans and out of his life? But then, they would have never met... Yet he himself wouldn't be in the Emperor's claws either... or would he?

Considering that the red-head woman had retrieved him from Vader's well-protected fortress, would the Rebels have protected him better from her if she had been sent after him in any other circumstances?

Somehow, he really doubted it; she seemed to be an extremely well-trained agent.

But then again, if she were that efficient in her missions, why hadn't she come after him before his father had managed to capture him again? Why hadn't she been sent after him a lot earlier than now?

"And, now," the Emperor's cold voice came from the Sith's black-enshrouded looming form.

Luke instantly had a bad feeling about his captor's intentions and swallowed hard in dread. He just knew that the enemy's immediate plans did not bode well for him; he reflexively glared at his nemesis in disgust.

"Where were we?" the despot smiled mock-confusedly at him. "Ah yes, my favourite part," he concluded heartlessly. He loomed even closer to him, his hands reaching out as if he were planning to either attack him or strangle him.

What happened next caught the Jedi totally unprepared.

He should have known, though, he thought dimly while he screamed in anguish. Just like what had happened to his father, bolts upon bolts of ravaging electric power poured over and inside him, burning him inside out.

He couldn't help but writhe and strain against his bonds under the continuous attacks.

He wouldn't turn, he thought as firmly as he could, hanging onto his resolve to resist the pain. He wouldn't turn... Gods, it was sheer agony!..

After long minutes of wailing, howling, whimpering and other indescribable sounds of pain, the bolts stopped, and then began anew.

Too late, Luke became aware that they were of another nature this time; his pain was not caused by his body, but by his Light that was being burned away from him. He panicked and tried to fight against the powers of the Dark Side, but to no avail.

The lightning attack had weakened him to the brink of unconsciousness; he needed his complete awareness to fight this new and different attack. He needed to reinforce his mental defences in order to resist this new assault, but he was unable to muster his focus.

He still did all he could, but he unfortunately soon found himself blocked away from the Light.

He couldn't touch it anymore!.. He realized in horror.

The coursing bolts of dark energy disappeared inside him, putting the final touch to the Dark Side veil.

No..., he whimpered in both despair and torment.

It just couldn't be...

He couldn't have lost the war before it had even begun... His Jedi Light... '_His_' internal Light... No!...

The jubilant Emperor cackled once again. "And thus, any resistance is useless, my young apprentice."

"Monster," he spat like his father had a little earlier, barely restraining his sobs of misery. At one moment or another during his latest torture session, he had also dislocating his left shoulder and it was now vividly informing him of that fact. Another bolt of electricity hit him in the stomach, making him yelp in complaint, and then the Emperor reached out again for his mind.

This time, he forced his '_presence_' to fuse with Luke's awareness until the boy's thoughts could also be heard by the Sith. Meanwhile, the youth shuddered in revulsion as he became aware of the Emperor's slimy and unforgivingly cold presence in his head. Then, and only then, Palpatine released him from this third round of torture, and Luke nearly passed out, for real this time.

He barely even felt a movement behind him before someone clutched his hair and forced him to look back up at the Emperor. His sweaty features were pulled yet again into a grimace in reaction to the sharp yank on his scalp.

"You've learnt two lessons today, my slave," the despot stated, glaring into his half-shut eyes. "Lesson number one: never say never to me ever again. From now on, my wish is your command, or else..."

Luke closed his eyes against the sight of the demented darksider. It couldn't be possible... It couldn't end... just like that... It '_had_' to be a nightmare!..

"And, lesson number two," the despot continued petulantly, glaring malevolently at him. "I am your '_Master_' and you will acknowledge me as such."

Luke first reflex was to inform the other that he hadn't learnt his lessons at all, but the moment that new bolts of energies crackled around the Emperor's fingertips and toward him, something in the youth's unrelenting defiance crumpled and gave way to an overwhelming fear of physical pain. Before he had controlled his body's reaction, the Jedi cringed and folded onto himself; he was simply unable to imagine going through yet another round of torture.

He couldn't... Not yet, anyway.

"Yes... Master."

Both his half-whispered answer and his physical reaction seemed to satisfy the Emperor and he motioned to the guards to pick him up once again. "Take him to his cell."

Instantly complaining the moment that they touched his torn arms, Luke almost, '_almost_' blacked out when they roughly pulled him up to a more or less standing position... but no.

He refused to give the Sith the satisfaction of yet another victory against him. Instead, he forced himself to remain conscious despite the excruciating pain that was now coursing through both of his dislocated shoulders. At least, he wasn't admitting complete defeat... yet.

Seeing this, the Emperor stepped forward once again and he viciously clasped the youth's chin with his clawed fingers before he made him look at him. He then locked his sulphurous glare on him and leaned closer than ever to him, his foul breath assailing the Jedi's nostrils. "We start your training tomorrow, my little Sithling. I will not tolerate anything less than perfection."

Luke bristled at the reminder of his lost Jedi identity, but the unspoken threat in the other's eyes, as well as the sharp claw-like nails drawing blood from his chin, convinced him that he was better not to react anymore.

He was too weak to actually resist his predicament anyway and the Emperor knew it.

They were also both well aware that the Jedi had already lost their fight of power. He could resist the Sith's will, but it was only a show of defiance without any real effect anymore.

Except to get him hurt further.

He silently cast his eyes down, once again admitting defeat although the mere thought sickened him to the utmost.

The Emperor let him go. "Good, you're learning now." He addressed the servile guards. "Take him to his cell. Make sure that he rests for tomorrow and have a medic see to him."

While Luke fumed again at the thought that the other would not only coerce him into obeying him, but that Palpatine would even control the rest of his life so that the slave he had turned him into would be able to please him as he wished, he felt more than saw himself being carried down the stairs. He was getting dizzier by the minute, his arms tormenting him ignominiously.

In between the upper steps and the main deck, his body then took control of the situation and decided for him that enough was enough.

He wasn't aware anymore when they reached the turbolift that his father had been taken to earlier.

* * *

Satisfied by this first confrontation between him and his willful new young slave, Darth Sidious turned on the monitoring screen with the Force even as he walked back toward his deserted throne. There, he sat in self-satisfaction and followed the progress of his loyal guards as they brought his young and naive new Sithling in his ysalamiri-cloaked cell inside his private dungeons. As per his orders, they inoculated him with a Jedi-proof sedative before they left him alone in the permeating darkness of his heavily shielded, sound-proof and thoroughly reinforced cubicle.

Although he had blocked as permanently as possible the boy's connection to the Light Side of the Force - a connection that had reflexively fought back with a vengeance even though he had methodically weakened the child before proceeding - he still intended to take any and all safety measures possible with the wily youth. He simply wouldn't underestimate him like his one-minded father had in the past.

Thus, he didn't put it past him to use even the Dark Side of the Force if it meant escaping him, and from experience, he also knew better than to show any leniency to a Sith apprentice of any caliber. Then, of course, there was also the slight, if quasi non-existent risk that the boy ever broke free from his veil and recovered his ability to use the Light Side of the Force; in such a case, the Jedi would not even hesitate to use the Force once he was out of ysalamiri's reach. Of course, he would still not escape - he would have to make it past him to do so - but what waste of effort that would be.

Thus, to break this limitlessly-strong '_and_' thoroughly unwilling slave, he would not only cut him off from everything related to his former identity, but he would also pry out of his hands everything that could even give him an inkling of a feeling of remaining freedom. He would also use any other means necessary to literally grind him into the ground and under his heel until the child knew better than to get up from where and how he left him, as per his wish.

In short, he would make certain that nothing but his wish would be the boy's command and incentive to act in any way; his future Sith would learn to not even '_dare_' think on his own unless allowed to.

Normally, he would take his time to destroy every part of his slave before he could reach such results by gradually rebuilding him, slowly moulding him into his perfect advocate. However, with the '_sudden_' disappearance of Lord Vader, he now found himself on a timetable, so to speak.

Therefore, he would also have to be even more unforgiving with his new Sithling than he had ever been with any of his predecessors.

On the screen, the medic he had requested stepped into view outisde his slave's cell. He flicked on his communicator, his voice instantly being carried to the loudspeaker nearest the camera that he was watching from. "Medic, reset only one of his shoulders and do not treat him further unless the problem is life-threatening. Do not fortify him either unless it is absolutely necessary."

The human medic bowed in respectful acknowledgement. "As you wish, your Highness."

He then stepped inside the small cubicle that had been unsealed.

Less than five minutes later, he left it again, leaving his patient in barely better shape than he had found him.

It pleased Palpatine and he began to plan how he would take advantage of the situation to break the brat's will faster than he had originally intended.

Meanwhile, the two guards - who were part of a six-member group that he had assigned to the unwilling youth until further notice - then stood at attention outside the locked door, their force pikes primed and ready for any source of trouble.

Not that any should come from within his secret dungeons and his Sithling's adjoining cells. However, considering the identities of those he held there – the latest of which was none other than the mighty Anakin Skywalker who had brought down the entire old Jedi order almost singlehandedly – he knew better than to underestimate '_any_' of his prisoners down there.

Still, the only one of real concern anymore was his little Sithling who had just joined them; his other prized and secret prisoners had long had their spirits broken by the various forms of torment that he had designed for them.

The boy was also the only one who still held any value other than a mere prize as, unlike the others, he was still young and inexperienced enough to be manipulated and twisted into what he required and wished of him so as to be able to use him to his own advantage.

The youth was also more than valuable to him now as, with Vader's blatant betrayal, the next individuals in line to oversee his Fleet and the army units aboard his ships were all ambitious but mere non-Force sensitive Grand Admirals. While he was confident that each and every one of them could hold his fleet and army in perfect order for several months, there would be a time when he would once again need a Force-strong right arm that would, in addition to leading his troops, also keep his word as Law, enforcing it over everyone without batting an eyebrow or even making a physical move.

In short, boy '_was_' more than invaluable to him. He was the last Force-strong individual beside himself, hence the last of the Sith.

At least for now.

Of course, he mused as he leaned back in his throne, the brat was already far too indoctrinated to simply believe his deceitful and manipulative words the way his father had, but he had other and far less subtle means to twist the boy into an obedient servant, some of which he had already put to use.

It only remained to be seen how long young Skywalker could resist the temptation of using the Force even though he would now need to focus on his emotions to connect with it. As for his unwillingness to tap into the Dark Side, if the boy's previous reaction to his threat of further torture was anything to go by, his reflexive desire to avoid more injuries should prove to be most efficient in forcing him to use the Dark Side of the Force.

For now, however, Sidious had to rejuvenate himself before he called his new quarry back in his presence, in a few hours only, and long before any of his courtesans showed up to curry his favors.

He focused his attention on his plan and delved deeper into the Dark Side of the Force, using its energies to restore his strenght before his next confrontation with his new apprentice.

It had been a long while since he had had an unwilling apprentice. He was already relishing the challenge of the upcoming months.

* * *

Morning came way too fast for the physically broken Jedi, as well as in the form of a brutal shock of electricity that coursed down his left and still-sensitive shoulder and into both his chest and left arm even before the guard's force pike had pulled completely away from him.

Luke's eyes snapped open even as he jerked up to a sitting position – and wailed in torture when his still-dislocated right shoulder burnt as if it would fall off from his body. He reflexively brought his left hand to it in an effort to relieve his torment – thus discovering that his left shoulder had been fixed while his right hadn't - only to find himself dragged off the hard bunk on which he had been laying and pulled down to the unyielding deck.

His already suffering body couldn't do anything but burn from the infection and numerous injuries that overwhelmed it; he wailed in anguish for as long as one of the royal guards straddled his prone form and secured his wrists behind his back.

During the short rest that he had been afforded, fever had taken hold of his body so that the icy cold deck added to his torment for as long as it pressed into his bare and mangled chest like blistering icicles. The guards ignored him and, as silent as ever, pulled him back to his feet – wrenching his still-injured shoulder so much that he passed out again from the new pang of torture.

Then, he was roused awake, somehow, and found himself yet again on his knees and in front of the Emperor. His arms were once again freed.

"You do not seem to be in condition to train, young one. We shall remedy to that immediately."

Without warning, his right arm moved of its own accord and pushed itself back into the capsule of his shoulder – nearly knocking him out yet again with the new throes of physical agony.

Luke then Felt him reach out into his body and make it generate a jolt of adrenaline that then roused him back to full awareness. Then, and only then, did he realize that he was on the main floor of the throne room, and that a wooden staff laid on the deck and in front of him.

He also understood that the adrenaline trick this was how he had been awakened upon his second arrival in Palpatine's presence.

"Exactly, my young apprentice. I told you that my wish is now your command and so, I now control any and '_every_' aspect of your life. Now, stand up."

Even if he had wanted – and he really didn't want to – Luke couldn't muster the strength to even make his muscles move a little, let alone perform the feat of actually standing up.

Visibly growing upset, Palpatine wrapped him once again in his Force bonds and pushed him to his feet before removing his support. "This is your last chance to avoid further injuries, boy. Now, call on the Force and defend yourself, or suffer the consequences."

Even before Luke had reminded himself that he couldn't use the Force anymore – not its Light Side at any rate – the royal guards had pounced on him. The rightmost guard instantly went for his freshly-mended right shoulder and, grabbing hold of Luke's still-unresponsive right arm, dislocated it again even as he broke his radius bone on his armored knee.

Gasping in astounding pain, the Jedi fell back to his knees where the second guard was able to hit him fully in the face with his equally-armored knee.

Spent, exhausted, and overwhelmed already by his physical and mental torment, Luke rolled with the impact and crumpled to the side where he remained, unmoving.

Then, the guards began assaulting his prone form and he was barely able to curve up on himself and protect himself. The steel-tipped red-clad toes buried themselves deep in his stomach, horribly bruised his back and tore open any other part of flesh that they connected with. He was also unable to deflect in any way the agonizing jabs of their force pikes.

* * *

Palpatine was not satisfied at all.

Whereas he had expected the purposefully-weakened child to at least mount some kind of defence against the physical assaults, the youth had left himself completely vulnerable to any and all new injuries, failing to make even one move to defend himself or a single attempt to call on the Force.

Displeased, he carefully monitored the new torture session and stopped his servants only when the youth's life was about to be threatened. By then, the boy's face was a mess of cuts and ugly bruises, his various welts had resumed bleeding all over his body, his left femur and fingers had also been broken, and a higher-powered force pike had slashed the back of his right shin open.

"Pathetic," he finally sneered in disgust at the broken form that laid at his feet. "We will resume this exercise once you are recovered. Take him away."

While he felt his slave's hope that he would at least be left alone for a while, Sidious used his bond with him to reveal to the boy that for as long as he wouldn't obey him, '_everything_' would be a torment for him whenever he would be awake.

He then walked up the stairs that led to his throne and prepared for the day ahead. As usual, he would only dole out favors to those who would truly be useful to him, but he would enjoy the grovelling of everyone else who would do anything to gain his support in their personal endeavors.

He would also have to handle the fact that Vader had '_disappeared_' without a trace.

* * *

Down in the secret dungeons, Luke was aware enough to notice that he was taken in one of the first two doors that weren't framed by the crimson-clad guards.

He understood that behind each of the other doors, there was a highly-valued – and probably dangerous – prisoner, hence that his father had to be in one of those widely-spaced cells.

Before he could think further, however, the Emperor's mental claws raked across his psyche even as he heard the other's voice as if he were standing before him.

*No one but myself, '_my_' wishes and '_my_' orders matter to you anymore, slave. Am I clear?"

Luke, who barely felt the guards tighten their grips on his arms while he writhed between them, refused to acknowledge the other's admonition- until the torment increased in intensity and the youth understood that the Sith master was waiting for an answer from his part.

'_The_' answer that he had said he would always except from him from now on.

'Nev-" "Aaaaaaah!" he yelled when the intensity of his new discipline increased even as the torment spread to the rest of his body when the Emperor began crushing his right shoulder in a Force-vise.

*Again?" the Sith taunted cruelly.

Luke tried, he really tried to resist, but it was just too much. 'Master!" he gasped in a mental beg for mercy.

The pain abruptly ended yet the Sith's presence remained connected with him, hovering threateningly and ready to resume the new discipline if he failed to follow up obediently.

*Am I clear, my apprentice?"

'Yes..." Luke answered... only to feel the first signs of the claws burying themselves back into his '_soul_' and he gasped *Master!"

He wasn't even aware that he had focused his fear into the Force, answering Palpatine not through their bond but through the Force.

The Emperor, though, Felt it all and was pleased.

Luke Felt '_that_' and sighed in relief as the other withdrew back to his own awareness only.

That relief lasted until the medical droid had finished preparing him for a bacta immersion and had dumped his sagged body into the treatment tank.

At that moment, the young rebel understood why the Alliance's medics had always knocked him out before a bacta treatment; he had never been in any comparable torment, not even when he'd suffered during the Emperor's attack of lighting bolts.

The torture was simply indescribable and he couldn't escape it.

Worse, the monitoring system was set up so that whenever he was about to pass out, a shot of adrenaline was injected into him so that he remained completely aware of his torment.

For as long as it lasted, each and every one of his cells felt afire, the horrible sensation worsening with each new shot of adrenaline that ended up heightening his sensitivity to pain.

He desperately prayed for the Force to free him through death.

He was left to his latest torture.

* * *

Several long hours later, hours that felt like eternity to the trapped youth, he was finally taken out of the tank and disconnected from the monitoring sensor. Then, and only then, was he finally allowed to faint.

He was also granted to remain unconscious while the droid finished tending him.

Then, the guards signaled their master of his readiness and the Sith master ordered them to bring him back to the throne room.

* * *

Like the last time that his Sithling had been brought before him, he arrived unconscious and slumped between his current guards. Sidious roused him yet again, just in time for the resisting boy to fall to his knees and stop his fall with his landing hands and arms.

He noticed that the boy had been given a short-sleeved shirt and ample pants, both light grey of color as was the protocol with any prisoner who had undergone a medical treatment and had lost their original clothes in the process.

"Time for another try, my young Sithling," he commented, taking a step closer to his recovering form.

The blue eyes – so very much like his father's – looked up and glared defiantly at him. "Wish away. I will never serve you."

"Tsk tsk tsk," he rebuked him mock-lightly, wagging his right index finger at him, "this is not our arrangement, I believe." He then lunged forward and clutched the boy's hair before he pulled and twisted until the youth's neck was painfully arched backward while he himself was looming threateningly over him. "By now you must understand that you will suffer greatly until you obey me," he spat viciously in the brat's face. "Make your choice, and make it fast, my little Sithling. There is no escaping me or my will."

"I will never join you," the unwise youth defied him once again.

It earned him a new round of mental and physical torture, first by him and his combined mental claws and lightning bolts, and then from the guards that finished him, breaking several of his bones due to the decalcification process that the bolts had initiated.

Palpatine didn't allow his slave to pass out and even enhanced his nerve sensitivity so that he felt everything with acute precision and maximum effect.

This time, he allowed the torture to continue for as long as the broken ribs hadn't truly began to threaten his apprentice' survival.

Then, while the youth was taken back to the bacta tank that he had left less than an hour ago, Palpatine returned to his quarters, revelling in every burst of agony that coursed through his slave's awareness before they fed his own power through his bond with the tormented boy.

The game had only begun, he smiled maliciously to himself while he sat in front of a sumptuous meal that had been prepared by his trusted chef. His foolish Sithling would learn never to play against him in any way ever again.

* * *

This time, when Luke recovered his senses, he was tightly strapped down to a chair and a device had been fastened to his head and in front of his eyes. The device was holding some sort of small projection screen within his line of vision, almost obliterating everything else from his sight.

He reflexively struggled against whatever '_they_' meant to do – and gasped when he felt the painful pressure of a needle being pushed into the main vein of his left hand. "No!" he objected, much more per reflex then real comprehension while he tried and arched his back as much as possible while straining against his other bonds- then an unfamiliar torpor swiftly took root in him, his relaxing muscles pulling him back against the back of the chair even as his eyes lost focus and stopped shifting in their sockets.

Within a few minutes, he could only see the small screen that he had noticed while the rest of his muscles were lethargic at best, paralysed at worse; he couldn't tell anyhow.

Belatedly, he understood that they had set him up in a flash-training device, and then the machine was turned on and he could only absorb the knowledge that was psychologically and technologically pushed into his brain.

He couldn't use the Force to resist it – as it was completely blocked from him while in the detention center – nor could he '_not_' comply with the '_program_'.

The technology that he was strapped into was making sure of '_that_'.

He was thus force-fed political, tactical and statistical information about the Empire – more information than he had ever had access to even as a rebel commander. He was given information about resources, installations and organisations that he hadn't known existed, and he was shown everything he was taught through audio and visual text, just in case that he was a visual learner. Holo recordings were often part of the package as well.

In a way, he visited all the worlds that were part of their galaxy, and yet, he didn't.

A headache slowly formed behind his temples, and then grew in intensity as the time passed, and still, the training program went on.

He was fed intravenously, and even medically reinforced when his mental and/or physical signs began to waver under the strain of the implantations, but he wasn't aware of any of it.

He was in a daze, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that he was absorbing even though he was completely unaware of actually doing anything. He wasn't even aware of how long he was submitted to the unrelenting technology.

It was only when it came to an end that he understood the new form of torture that he had just undergone.

He moaned from both the pain that threatened to split his head open and the despair that was welling up in him as he realized just how far the Sith's control of his life could extend.

He was then further downcast when an unfortunately-familiar voice chuckled in mean satisfaction at his latest loss of composure.

He should have known that '_it_' wouldn't end unless '_he_' was nearby once again.

* * *

Although Sidious kept his physical visits to his secret and ysalmiri-blanketed dungeons as rare and as short as possible, the arrival of his new Sith apprentice had made him change his routine. After all, he had to take every and any opportunity to break his willful little Sith, and so, he had to be present whenever he was coming out of a torture session, offering him a chance to avoid the next one, ysalamiri be damned.

Besides, he was safe down here, where no one knew he was and surrounded by a complete commando of his most loyal royal guards.

"I told you that you will serve me even if you don't wish to," he reminded his Sithling meaningfully while he stepped closer to the groaning young man. "This first session, though, was merely meant to update your knowledge of my Empire. As my second-in-command, you cannot afford to lag behind on your intel."

"I'll never serve- aaaaah!" the rebellious boy shrieked while one of his guards punished him with a low-powered force-pike.

"Yet you know," he reminded him once the youth had fallen silent once again, "that each and every defiant act from your part will be punished with utmost prejudice. Be wise and surrender already, my young friend. There is so very much I have to teach you, so very much that could be learnt in a painless way if you stop resisting me."

His lack of answer was punished by yet another jab of electricity.

"Perhaps you will change your mind before the end of the current test."

"T... test?" the beleaguered Jedi gaped in confusion.

"Of course, my friend," he answered mock-magnanimously. "After all, these teaching devices have their limitations in that they convey more information than some people can absorb. Testing your memory is the only way to determine what you have learnt, and what you haven't. In your case, however, there will be another incentive to answer correctly: each wrong answer, or lack thereof, will add to the tally of whip lashes that you will receive afterward. Each good answer will naturally deduct one point from your negative score. If you answer them all correctly, your next treatment will be painless."

"Save yourself the trouble then and get it over with already," the youth retorted angrily. "I will not cooperate."

Irritated that nothing seemed to faze the frustrating brat, Sidious viciously grabbed hold of the youth's chin and clenched his fist until his nails punctured the soft flesh of his young and now scarred face. The Jedi's grimace pleased him greatly. "Then we start with a tally of fifty lashes already," he stated harshly.

The boy tensed in his bonds and struggled – only to be punished by lightning bolts that went straight to his head.

"You will obey me, young Sithling, if not today, then soon enough. The test has begun."

When he let go of the dazed brat, he expected him to realize how beaten he was and to eventually start answering the device's questions as best as he could, but the pest remained adamantly silent, even when the guards urged him to answer with some incentives of their own.

For his lack of cooperation, the Emperor made the final tally one hundred and to be '_paid_' in full right away.

The boy naturally struggled when he was freed from the chair and pulled into more appropriate bondage, which earned him more punishments from both himself and his ever loyal servants, and then his slave was helpless once again.

Palpatine left him to his next two rounds of torture.

He would learn never to defy him, he promised himself; he had never failed in such endeavours and never would.

Before he left the detention center, he left orders to the medical droid to inject the boy with a pain enhancer before his next bacta treatment.

He would teach his foolish Sithling that there was no getting used to the pain he could bestow on him for as long as he wished.

* * *

TBC

Well? How was that? Who do you think will win the challenge of wills? What did you think of Palpy's punishment for his traitorous ex-apprentice? Or the various means that he is already using to break Luke? What else do you think that he'll use if need be?

Have a great week-end everyone, and remember, reviews are very precious gifts all year long Moreover, this is a great incentive not to abandon Luke to his currently horrible fate.

P.s. : By the way, sorry about the ' ' around the italicized words, but it was either leave them there and post this week, or erase them before posting and not update before another month at least... I am already one month later than I expected to be ready for this update... I figured that updating the stories was more important for you than the ' '. Was I right?

While you enjoy the new updates, I will finish the edition and remove the ' ', don't worry ;P


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